Cream goes in your coffee. Not on your walls. I’m breaking my own rules here.
It’s called “Invitation Ivory” by Pratt and Lambert. I’m no fan. But, it’s the color of our trim, so when I decided that the dining room bay needed to be a neutral color for photographs I didn’t have a choice. Plus, I have buckets of this stuff floating around. Win win?
I don’t know. I’m not a fan of cream walls. I subscribe to the “color is better” theory when it comes to interiors. I mean, if you like softer shades and neutrals, I get it. But I think you can still accomplish that look without using straight cream. There’s pale and beautiful, and then there’s bland. Cream is for coffee and trim.
But I’ve also reached my end with product shots. Last year there was a dearth of home decor pillows in Mireio simply because I knew that I had no way of adequately photographing the product once it was made. I can’t tell you how many conversations I’ve had with IZ in the past 3 years that start, “These photographs are driving me crazy!” Â Unless you photograph your work regularly, you probably don’t realize the hours some of us spend on crafting the perfect shot. It can be infuriating. In my case, living on the north coast means a lack of sun on most days. Add to that, a very non-photogenic yellow paint coating the common areas of our home and you get a grumpy Wende.
I want to dispense with the yellow entirely. But it’s a matter of time and money and IZ and I coming to some meeting of the minds on a replacement color scheme. We may need a professional mediator. He’s a visual person, so I have to show him examples of what’s floating around in my head, otherwise it’s a flat, “WHAT? Lilac? Uh, NO.” And he’s completely dismissed my idea of running with my signature blues throughout the house. So, while I scavenge through old magazines and save pennies, I still need a place  to photograph product shots when the light is dim and the dining room bay is my best bet. It’s sunny and scenic and with a fresh coat of paint, not yellow.
While color is beautiful and I think you should live in colors that work for you—my idea of wonderful probably isn’t yours. If IZ’s response to my ideas is any indication! And the golden rule of product shots is to create an environment your customer can imagine being in. I don’t care how amazing the pillow is, or your doodad, if it’s shot against a loud and obnoxious background you’re limiting your customer base to people with YOUR taste. I’m not willing to risk it. Â So, I’m breaking my own rules. Â Hold me closer tiny dancer! It’s freaking me out!
It’s not ideal. But I do think it’s creative. Well, as creative as cream can be. Oh, who am I kidding! I just painted walls cream. Shoot me.
My walls are cream and I would love to be able to decide on a color, but it would have to work in too many different rooms since the walls just seem to blend into one another. Grrr! My SIL had a pale lilac bedroom in her house and it was gorgeous. I was in love with it!
___________________________________________________
That’s a problem for us too. While we don’t have an open floor plan, we do have arches that span into other rooms. So, you can stand in the dining room and see the kitchen, the living room, the entry way, and up the hallway. Matchy matchy isn’t in my vocab, but I’d like it to flow. It’s probably why I’m so resistant to open floor plans. You really do get hemmed into one wall color and that ends up being a bland neutral, because who wants to commit to an entire house of “yellow” or “blue” ect. And vaulted ceilings are enough to daunt any homeowner’s gumption to paint!
And I adore lilac… but I get that it’s not for everyone. And, without a drastic color change scheme change throughout the house, it’s not happening. But I agree, soooo pretty! ~W
I need to paint our house. I had a pale lilac bedroom in our old house. It had white woodwork, though. It was lovely. Lots of the other rooms were a pale green. I miss that white woodwork.
I find choosing wall paint one of the MOST difficult tasks.
___________________________________________________
I agree, it is hard to find the right color. And even once you’ve decided “I want this kind of blue” it’s difficult to get that to translate on the wall. Poor IZ, part of why he’s so resistant to painting is that in the first “house” we had where we could paint, he painted the kitchen 4 times before I was happy with it.
As for woodwork… love the stuff. Hate painting it, but I think it’s worth the effort. Assuming your woodwork is already painted. 😀 If it’s not, you lucky lucky dog! ~W
Not a cream colored room in the entire house over here, we have lilac, pumpkin, teal, orangy/pinky, burgundy, and green. Yea we kind of have a color-tastic house!!!
I hear you on the photos, I just take them in front of a window, it’s kinda weird because of the fence outside but I have small products so it’s easy. With bigger things it would be a lot harder. I can’t stand to try to take pictures of my bags! I took some in the living room with a friend’s plastic model and they are okay, not great by any means, but they suffice.
Good luck and I hope it helps with your photo-taking! 🙂 Although I think your photos are fantastic as they are! In fact I am often jealous of the fantastic photos in your shop!!!
___________________________________________________
Your photos are great! I think I struggle mostly with the fact that I sell such a wide range of things. If it was just small things like sachets and candles, the window in the hallway would work fine. But the minute I need to photograph anything larger it becomes this nightmare trying to find light and NOT get the yellow in the photo. It doesn’t photograph well… and people are funny about yellow. 😀 I could go the photoshop route, but I honestly just don’t have the patience for it. So, a tiny cream colored bay it is. I’m sure Martha Stewart will forgive me. 😀 ~W
I’m not that difficult to live with, am I? My resistance to color cacophony is offset by my regular delivery of mochas, right? 🙂
In any case, can’t wait to see the new photos taken in the new space. Ah the glory of LIGHT…
___________________________________________________
Living with you is easy. It’s choosing wall paint that’s a PITA. You seriously don’t remember the horror 6 years ago? GAH! The only reason we ever settled on the yellow, was that we found a magazine article featuring it that we both liked. Um… I don’t want to talk about the HUGE stack of design magazines we went through before we found that one. In fact, I kept those things, I should haul them out again. 😀
And yes… you’ve got that mocha thing down. ~W